If you’re a woman with thick, long-ish hair (as I am), you’ve likely experienced the drama that is a clogged shower drain on more than one occasion.
Over the years, I’ve tried just about everything to avoid standing in a pool of dirty, lukewarm water for the duration of what’s supposed to be a rejuvenating shower. I’ve tried the “natural” solution of pouring boiling water down my drain; when that didn’t work, I pummeled my pipes with toxic Drano, much to the horror of my landlord. I’ve tried unspooling a hanger and sticking it as far down my shower drain as possible to dig around for the hair clog, and while this does usually work, it’s a really gross process worth avoiding at all costs.
Last year, I decided I wanted to break this nasty cycle by stopping the hair clog problem before it started. After some quick research, I found a tiny tool that had a whopping 16,000 reviews on Amazon: the Tub Shroom. It’s described on the site as “revolutionary,” and I can’t say I disagree. All you have to do is nestle this cute little $13 gadget into your shower drain and voila! — your hair never gets into your pipes.
The Tub Shroom does require some maintenance, since it works by catching the hair before it makes its way to your pipes, but it’s nothing a weekly 30-second wipe-down can’t fix. I also make sure to give it a thorough scrub once a month or so since it can turn a little bit … icky (I’d rather not know why). Those tiny tasks are a small price to pay for hairball-free pipes.
I am pleased to report that since purchasing the Tub Shroom, I have had exactly zero stressful run-ins with my shower drain, and I’ve stopped running to CVS at random hours of the night for container of foul-smelling Drano. And hey, that’s something to celebrate.